Dhanmondi-Jigatola: How safe is Dhaka’s restaurant district?

A 14-storey building named Gawsia Twin Peak, located on Sat Masjid Road in Dhanmondi area, houses no less than 20 restaurants. The building's architect, Mustapha Khalid Palash, said the owners focused on making money instead of following safety rules. He brands them as "money-mongers".

In a Facebook post yesterday, Palash urged all to avoid Gawsia Twin Peak and to go have street food instead.

The building is not an isolated case within the vicinity. Stretching from Jigatola to Sat Masjid Road, the area appears to host the largest concentration of restaurants in Dhaka, with an estimated count of around 100 dining establishments. 

Some of these buildings house upwards of a dozen restaurants each, leading to cramped lift and stairway conditions that pose risks reminiscent of the tragic incident witnessed on Thursday night at Baily Road.

Despite the prevalence of commercial buildings in the area, housing restaurants is not inherently problematic. However, such buildings must adhere to safety standards and regulations, particularly considering the diverse needs and operations of businesses they accommodate.

Photo: Rajib Dhar/TBS

For instance, restaurants necessitate fire suppression systems, emergency exits, proper ventilation, and prominently displayed safety signage to safeguard customers and staff in emergencies.

According to the Bangladesh Restaurant Owners Association, Dhanmondi and Mohammadpur areas alone boast around 300 sizable dining establishments. 

The pertinent question is do these buildings uphold requisite safety measures, especially after 46 lives were lost in a Thursday night blaze at a Bailey Road building that housed shops and diners. 

According to the Bangladesh Restaurant Owners' Association (Broa), they need a minimum of 12 certifications before establishing a restaurant. Yet, it remains uncertain how many of these establishments possess and diligently maintain all the requisite certifications and compliance standards, they said.

Syed Mohammad Andalib, joint secretary of the association, told The Business Standard, "Not only the restaurant, everyone should be held accountable for fire incidents.

He said that before Ramadan they will write to all restaurant owners of the association and prepare a checklist to strengthen the fire-fighting system.

Ignoring building category 

According to architects and city planners, most buildings on Sat Masjid Road were originally intended for commercial spaces, categorised as F-1 by Rajuk, allowing only offices. 

However, due to low demand for offices and higher profits from restaurants, owners have been tempted to break these rules. 

Mohammad Shamsul Haque, a director at Rajuk, told TBS that restaurants can not be established in a commercial designated space unless the category is changed with permission from fire service and city corporation. 

Star Kabab, one of the oldest restaurants on Satmasjid Road, was built in the late nineties. Its owner, Mir Akter Uddin Dulal, told TBS, "We started this restaurant in 1996 on rent. Our restaurant is on the ground floor of a 5-and-a-half-storey building, offering many open fire exits."

Explaining the prevalence of numerous restaurants on Satmasjid Road, he said, "Landlords prefer renting out restaurants as they yield slightly higher profits compared to offices. While an office may rent for Tk100, a restaurant can fetch Tk120-Tk130." 

He further said, "Satmasjid Road has about 50 multi-storied buildings, but the demand for offices isn't as high. Landlords turn to renting out restaurants in hopes of profitability."

A frequent customer of these restaurants told The Business Standard he often visits the eateries with his wife and child on holidays and finds them full of people. 

"If there's an accident, the narrow exit could be risky. I can manage, but what about my child? There are usually only two to four elevators, and the staircase is also very narrow," he added.

Arifuzzaman, another frequent visitor to restaurants on Sat Masjid Road, voiced concerns on Facebook, "These buildings were not originally intended for restaurants." 

He cited the example of Trump Tower building near Jigatola bus stand. "Even after the completion of construction of the building, no tenant rented the building. Then slowly one day I saw the restaurant in the whole building."

Restaurants more prone to fire  

Experts warn that buildings dominated by restaurants are prone to fires, necessitating strict action by regulatory authorities like Rajuk against violators of building codes. 

Architect Mustapha Khalid Palash said even well-built structures become vulnerable when converted into full-fledged restaurant buildings due to loopholes in the law. He lamented the lack of accountability among developers and landlords regarding fire safety measures.

Adil Mohammed Khan, President of the Bangladesh Institute of Planners, stressed that converting commercial office spaces into restaurants is illegal and should not be tolerated.

"Many buildings have two stairs as per regulations, but some misuse fire exit stairs as storage areas. Authorities should discourage such practices," he said.

Some have converted residential buildings into non-residential spaces, which should be strictly regulated, he added. 

Md Saleh Uddin, deputy director, Fire service and Civil Defence Dhaka Division, said there is a need for enhanced safety measures in restaurants due to higher risk.

However, he did not comment specifically on the Satmasjid road area.

Brigadier General (retd) Abu Nayeem Md Shahidullah, former Director General of Fire Service and Civil Defense, said markets, shops, restaurants, and grocery stores using stoves in Dhanmondi and Mirpur areas are vulnerable to fire.

He also criticised the practice of issuing conditional licences to building owners, urging authorities to enforce stricter regulations to ensure compliance with safety standards.

Dangerous buildings 

In a recent survey, the fire service and civil defence found that about 90% of buildings in Dhaka, whether residential or commercial, are at risk of fire. 

Despite warnings, many building owners ignore the risks. Around 23% of these buildings are categorised as "high risk" for fire incidents.

Between January and December 2022, the department inspected 1,162 government, residential, commercial, and other buildings in Dhaka. Of these, 499 were deemed risky and 136 were classified as high risk.

Md Saleh Uddin, deputy director of the Dhaka Division Fire Service and Civil Defense, stated that they regularly issue warnings to risky buildings through letters after inspections. However, most owners fail to comply with safety guidelines, disregarding the warnings.

The organisation also inspected 58 markets and shopping malls in Dhaka in April 2023. Nine were deemed "extremely risky," 14 "moderately risky," and 35 "risky."